Grey plover taxonomy

The family Charadriidae was first described by William Elford Leach, MD, FRS (2 February 1791 – 25 August 1836), an English zoologist and marine biologist, in a guide to the contents of the British Museum published in 1820.

The family Charadriidae comprises two subfamilies, viz., Vanellinae and Charadriinae. The subfamily Charadriinae was described by William Elford Leach in the year 1820. This subfamily comprises eight genera, viz., Pluvialis, Charadrius, Thinornis, Elseyornis, Peltohyas, Anarhynchus, Phegornis and Oreopholus.

The genus Pluvialis was first introduced by Mathurin Jacques Brisson (30 April 1723 – 23 June 1806), a French zoologist and natural philosopher, in the year 1760.

The genus Pluvialis comprises four species, namely, Pluvialis apricaria, Pluvialis fulva, Pluvialis dominica and Pluvialis squatarola. The species Pluvialis squatarola is polytypic and comprises three subspecies.